Thank you Redragon for sending us this keyboard to review!

Redragon is well known for making compelling products at remarkably low prices. I've long wanted to review them because I want to offer our readers more value-oriented choices along with some of the higher-end options I've reviewed in the past. Usually lower prices come with some compromises. That is certainly the case here as well, but each manufacturer makes different sacrifices to hit whatever price point they are aiming for. What Redragon has done here is make different, but in some ways better compromises, leading to a product that I absolutely love despite its quirks and limitations.

The Redragon Castor K631 Pro SE (yes that's a mouthful; Redragon K631 Pro SE works best on search engines, and I will refer to it either as Castor Pro or K631 Pro) is a 65% wireless keyboard that has a remarkable feature set. Let's start with its physical build and go from there.

The base of the keyboard is made with a thick layer of translucent plastic. It's almost transparent, but not quite; it's that fuzzy translucent where you can see everything but not clearly. It has a slight texture to it, so it makes sound if you scratch it, and doesn't leave fingerprints. It reminds me a bit of older electronics or perhaps game consoles or controllers with a slightly gray translucent shell. You can see the back of the PCB (Printed Circuit Board) from the bottom, and the RGB LEDs that shine up through the top also shine below, showing you a pattern of lights through the bottom. The material is also easy to scratch, as I accidentally scratched the bottom of the keyboard (I don't recall how). There are feet to keep the keyboard in place, as well as flippable feet you can use to tilt the keyboard up more if you like. The feet have only two settings, down and up; many other keyboards have two different heights, while this one does not. There is also an indent on the bottom to insert the 2.4GHz wireless transmitter.

The sides of the keyboard is made of the same material as the bottom, and outside of the logo, all of the ports are on the left side. The USB-C port for wired connectivity is there, and the included cable has a right-angle connector. I will say that I wish the little inset around the USB-C port was a little bit wider, as some of the USB-C cables I regularly use don't fit in there, so I can't plug those cables in to charge the keyboard. Below that is the mode switch, where you slide it forward for 2.4GHz wireless mode, middle for off (or wired mode), and bottom for Bluetooth. Bluetooth supports up to three separate devices, and you switch between modes by pressing Fn+Q, W, or E to switch between the three Bluetooth devices. Below the switch are two status LEDs, labeled 'A' and 'M'. These blink based on the Action or Mode. For example, if caps lock is on, the 'A' LED may light up. Or it might flash if in pairing mode, or if the battery is low. The Mode light will be in different colors depending on what mode it's in. For example, green is wireless, red is charging and white when full, and blue is Bluetooth.

Obviously for a keyboard, the top side is the business end. For those unaware, a 65% keyboard, as this K631 Pro is, has only 65% of the number of keys that a full 104-key full-sized keyboard has. In this case, the number pad and function row are gone, and the arrow keys as well as the PgUp/PgDn/Home/End/Ins/Del cluster is collapsed down to just 3-4 keys. The escape key replaces the tilde in the number row, and F1-F12 are accessed via the Fn key + 1 through +, replacing all twelve F keys. Each keyboard vendor seems to handle the navigation cluster differently; the ROCCAT Vulcan II Mini chose Del/Home/PgUp/PgDn in that order, from top to bottom.

It seems that Redragon chose a different layout that I thought was crazy at first, but after getting used to it, it's not too bad. What they did was put Del at the top, then tilde, then PgUp, then PgDn. Tilde being on the opposite side of the board is a little strange, but it doesn't really bother me. The Del key location is fine, no problems there. Home and End are now both Fn accessed, which is honestly fine since they are consistent. I have no issue at all with PgUp/PgDn. What is interesting/unusual is that right next to the arrow keys, to the right of Fn, is the Menu button, which I usually find is skipped on many small form factor keyboards. There is also a Fn2 button there, which is only used for macros. I wish that they instead of menu made that button right Ctrl, and made menu accessible via Fn. They could then put Fn2 over Alt instead. That would make it easier to use Ctrl+PgUp/PgDn, which are commonly used navigation key combinations in many web browsers. A small number of keys are missing, like Scroll Lock and Pause/Break, but most people won't miss those. Insert and Print Screen are still available via Fn and ' and ; respectively.

The key caps feel really nice to the touch, even if they are ABS. Thankfully, they are textured rather than shiny, which I've come to like much more. I would imagine they will eventually get shiny, as one spot on my space bar has, but it will take some time and use. The main letters are shine through on the keys, and the backlight glows through them in a pleasant way. The tertiary features, like what is locked behind Fn and Fn2, are just printed on the key caps in white, which you can feel, and it takes away from the way the keyboard feels to type on a bit. They will also eventually fade and wipe off after extensive use, being just printed on.

I received the Mint & Black model, and so my key caps are black for the main alphabet, and green for the keys along the outside edges, as well as a few other green accent keys like 5678. It honestly looks really sharp; I never thought I would want a two-tone keyboard, but I can see the appeal now. One thing I did notice is that the RGB lighting shines through brighter on the green caps than the black ones, at least with some colors (like my favorite dark blue).

One huge highlight of this keyboard is, well, two things. First, is the swappable mechanical switches. This board is compatible with both three and five pin switches, as the hot-swap sockets have accommodations for both kinds. I love this. But the thing is, this board comes with Redragon 'Mint Lemon' keyboard switches, which are a Redragon invention. And I absolutely love them.

I have to say that I am not (yet?) a key switch aficionado. There are perhaps hundreds of key switch types out there today, and hobbyists often obsess over the tiniest of details for each type of switch, seeking one that most closely matches their preferences. Unfortunately(?), I am slowly moving towards the same place. You see, as I get older, I have learned that softer, smoother touch keyboard switches are easier on these aging hands to use, and these Mint Lemons require on average about 37 grams of force to activate. This is such a light switch, and not only that, but it's also fairly quiet, with only a low 'click' as it hits the bottoms out.

Under the key caps is another piece of thick clear plastic that has holes for each switch. In each hole is the socket in the PCB where the switch is inserted. Because the switch itself is stabilized by the thick plastic plate, it's called a plate mounted switch. And man is it solid and sturdy. This keyboard has barely any flex, and typing on this feels so incredibly solid, without any unexpected mushiness or give when typing. I am actually shocked how good typing on this feels overall. Between the excellent switches and the incredibly solid plate mounting, I just can't get over how nice this feels to type on. And it sounds great, too. It has no ringing or anything, and the large key stabilizers are super quiet and extremely sturdy. They do not shake or rattle at all. I have seen much more expensive keyboards from popular name brands that do not have stabilizers this good. I am thoroughly impressed.